1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a means for providing a locking mechanism to secure a wick clip or wick holder assembly in a melting plate candle or other candle assembly having a replaceable wick and/or fuel puck. This invention is most particularly designed to be used in a melting plate candle having means to provide a capillary feed between the wick holder and the melting plate, as well as in jar candles or conventional container candles.
2. Description of the Related Art
Clips which locate and secure wicks for candles and for devices which dispense vapors into the ambient air are well known in the art, and useful in many applications. In candles, such clips provide a means to position the wick for the most efficient provision of fuel, such as candle wax, to the flame, while in vapor dispensing devices, such wick clips secure a wick by which a vaporizable liquid is delivered from a reservoir to an exposed surface.
More recently, melting plate candles and simmer plate dispensers have been used to provide rapid melting of a solid fuel element and/or rapid dispensing of a vaporizable material to the atmosphere. An example of such a dispensing device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,780,382, issued Aug. 24, 2004, in which a dispenser for active materials is shown. This reference, incorporated herein by reference, illustrates a melting plate dispenser of volatile materials comprising a solid fuel containing active material, a consumable wick, and a heat conductive base having conductive elements, and the configuration of such elements.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,802,707, issued Oct. 12, 2004, incorporated herein by reference, a melting plate candle comprising solid fuel, a consumable wick, a concave melting plate comprising a lobe by which heat is conducted from the flame upon the candle to the plate, and the configuration of such elements, are shown.
In addition to the above, in application Ser. No. 10/780,028, filed Feb. 17, 2004, a candle comprising solid fuel, a melting plate, a lobe which engages a wick holder comprising a wick and conducting heat to said lobe and to said melting plate is taught, wherein said wick holder engages said lobe in such a manner as to create a capillary flow of melted fuel to the wick itself.
Still further, application Ser. No. 10/938,434, filed Sep. 10, 2004, of which the present application is a Continuation-In-Part, teaches means to secure a wick clip to a melting plate by means of a skirt or spider legs, which clip over a pedestal in the melting plate or snap-fit into a recess in the melting plate.
In each of the above references, it is possible that the wick holder assembly, comprising the wick and wax puck, i.e. the fuel, may fall out of the container if the container or candle holder is tipped excessively, or turned on its side, and it may be difficult to precisely position the wick holder along the bottom of the candle container.